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Tag Archives: Brian Culbertson

The endless Arizona sky will be filled with a galaxy of stars day and night during the Arizona Jazz Festival slated for October 25-27, 2013 at the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa in Phoenix, Arizona. More than 13,000 contemporary jazz and soul fans from across the nation are expected to flock to the lavish desert resort to enjoy performances by a stellar slate of Grammy-winners and chart-toppers along with a weekend of revelry. Tickets are on sale now for the three-day festival or as a single-day event and are available online at www.arizonajazzfestival.com and by calling 602.244.8444.

The Arizona Jazz Festival opens with an evening of seduction starting with the tantalizing pairing of saxophonist Eric Darius and R&B vocalist-producer Lyfe Jennings, who will set the mood for marquee-topper Maxwell, a Grammy-winning soul balladeer. Stick around for the official after-party at the resort.

Live music begins Saturday when nattily-attired guitarist Nick Colionne and new jazz swagger sax player J. White hit the stage followed by a trio set by saxophonists Warren Hill and Tom Braxton with blues-based guitar slinger Jeff Golub. Powerhouse tenors Gerald Albright, Richard Elliot and Euge Groove will blow a fierce sax storm in the desert before ten-time Grammy winner Chaka Khan belts out a song list filled with her massive crossover hits. The Queen of Neo Soul Erykah Badu will reign over majestic grooves and Baduizms preceding a set by “Uncle” Charlie Wilson, a 2013 BET lifetime achievement award winner, crooning cuts from his Grammy-nominated R&B songbook. After the concert, a number of the festival artists will head into the Arizona Grand Resort & Spa for an all-star jam.

It’s going to be a great-looking Sunday when saxophonists Jessy J and Michael Lington link with keyboardist Jonathan Fritzen to open the final day followed by a neo soul session from vocalist Eric Benet. Emerging saxmen Elan Trotman and Dominic Amato will accompany R&B chanteuse Melanie Fiona for an outing. Captivating multi-instrumentalist Brian Culbertson will inject a potent dose of funk-jazz into the mix during a high-octane performance before fellow blue-eyed soul man Robin Thicke blurs the lines during a set list certain to include the #1 summer smash “Blurred Lines.” Closing the festival is edgy multiplatinum R&B personality and reality television star Keyshia Cole.

“We pulled out all the stops for the Arizona Jazz Festival, which is perhaps the most spectacular lineup we have ever presented. While every festival that BTWconcerts.com produces and promotes is special, this is our hometown festival. We look forward to hosting guests from all over the U.S. that are passionate about jazz and R&B. It’s going to be an unforgettable weekend of live music and partying,” said Brad Laughlin of BTWconcerts.com, which also produces the Las Vegas Jazz Festival and the San Diego Jazz Festival.

The Arizona Jazz Festival offers reserved seating with ticket prices starting at $240.00 for the entire weekend or $65.00 for a single-day seat. For the enthusiast, tickets can be upgraded to include the Rock Star Experience that provides VIP tent access, a complimentary meal and drinks, artist meet & greets, Arizona Jazz Festival commemorative bag, t-shirt, poster and laminate, and entry to the Friday night after-party and Saturday night all-star jam.

Brian Culbertson is not only a prolific composer/writer/musician but also author of a songbook with the simple title Brian Culbertson. The book includes Jazz piano solos from the talented, highly-acclaimed young composer/arranger/multi-instrumentalist, Brian Culbertson. This book contains hit songs from each of Brian’s last six recordings. Titles are:

* Come to Me
* Midnight Sun
* After Hours
* Close to You
* So Good
* On My Mind
* You’re the One
* Do You Really Love Me?
* Back in the Day
* The Rise and Fall (Of Loving You)
* I’m Gonna Miss You
* Get It On
* I Could Get Used to This
* All About You
* Someone
* Alone with You.

Brian Culbertson is the wonder boy of smooth jazz. Sure, he has reached a decent age, but how he graces his music, that speaks for the energy of his youth. He plays with music like formats never existed. With eleven albums Long Night Out (1994), Modern Life (1995), After Hours (1996), Secrets (1997), Somethin’ Bout Love (1999), Nice & Slow (2001), Come On Up (2003), It’s On Tonight (2005), A Soulful Christmas (2006), Bringing Back the Funk (2008) and Live From The Inside (2009) he won a respectable place in the smooth jazz community. Where Brian is, you find the groove.

His latest album is called XII (2010) and was released in July 20, 2010. On his well-designed website you will find a lot of information about this album. Brian is also a friend of social networks like twitter, myspace and facebook and documented the recording in many video-blogs. So his fans are best informed about the making of this brilliant album.

But wait! Brian is already releasing his next album called Dreams on June 12, 2012. The new album is packed with brand new songs from Brian, and Brian brought in guest vocalists Vivian Green, Noel Gourdin and Stokley Williams of Mint Condition to masterfully mix jazz with some R&B flair! Listen to snippets at Brian’s website or at soundcloud.

Join the gentleman of Smooth Jazz Dave Koz and his friends for a week-long fun-filled trip to Europe. He will be cruising the Italian and French Riviera in September of 2012. It’s really a dream-come-true itinerary starting in Barcelona, Spain and continuing on to Naples, Rome and Florence, Italy — then on to Nice and Toulon, France! Three countries and six ports during an unforgettable seven-day cruise on board the Royal Caribbean Line’s Serenade of the Seas. This cruise is already booked out, but perhaps you have luck to catch the boat!

On October 2, 2012 the ship will arrive at Toulon, France. Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d’Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence.

The old town of Toulon, the historic centre located between the port, the Boulevard de Strasbourg and the Cours Lafayette, is a pedestrian area with narrow streets, small squares and many fountains. Toulon Cathedral is located here. The area is also home of the celebrated Provençal market which takes place every morning on the Cours Lafayette, which features local products. The old town had decayed in the 1980s and 1990s, but recently many of the fountains and squares have been restored, and many new shops have opened.

Join the gentleman of Smooth Jazz Dave Koz and his friends for a week-long fun-filled trip to Europe. He will be cruising the Italian and French Riviera in September of 2012. It’s really a dream-come-true itinerary starting in Barcelona, Spain and continuing on to Naples, Rome and Florence, Italy — then on to Nice and Toulon, France! Three countries and six ports during an unforgettable seven-day cruise on board the Royal Caribbean Line’s Serenade of the Seas. This cruise is already booked out, but perhaps you have luck to catch the boat!

On Monday, October 1st, 2012 the ship will arrived in Nice, France. Located on the south east coast of France on the Mediterranean Sea, Nice is the second-largest French city on the Mediterranean coast after Marseille. The city is called Nice la Belle (Nissa La Bella in Niçard), which means Nice the Beautiful, which is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Nice, written by Menica Rondelly in 1912. Nice is the capital of the Alpes Maritimes département and the second biggest city of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region after Marseille.

The Promenade des Anglais (“Promenade of the English”) is a promenade along the Baie des Anges, a bay of the Mediterranean, in Nice. Before Nice was urbanized, the coastline at Nice was just bordered by a deserted stretch of beach covered with large pebbles. The first houses were located on higher ground well away from the sea.

Starting in the second half of the 18th century, many wealthy English people took to spending the winter in Nice, enjoying the panorama along the coast. When a particularly harsh winter up north brought an influx of beggars to Nice, some of the rich Englishmen proposed a useful project for them: the construction of a walkway (chemin de promenade) along the sea.

The city of Nice, intrigued by the prospect of a pleasant promenade, greatly increased the scope of the work. The Promenade was first called the Camin dei Anglès (the English Way) by the Niçois in their native dialect, Nissart. After the annexation of Nice by France in 1860 it was rechristened La Promenade des Anglais, replacing the former Nissart name with its French translation.

The Hotel Negresco on the Promenade des Anglais was named after Henri Negresco (1868–1920) who had the palatial hotel constructed in 1912. In keeping with the conventions of the time, when the Negresco first opened in 1913 its front opened on the side opposite the Mediterranean.

Another place worth mentioning is the small street parallel to the Promenade des Anglais, leading from Nice’s downtown, beginning at Place Masséna, and running parallel to the promenade in the direction of the airport for a short distance of about 4 blocks. This section of the city is referred to as the “Zone Pietonne”, or “Pedestrian Zone”. The banning of cars creates a more serene setting. Here tourists can find a fine selection of restaurants, specializing in both Niçoise cuisine and various types of foreign cuisine. There is also a large selection of cafés where one can sit and enjoy an espresso or choose from a variety of specialty coffees, ices and desserts, and watch the city walk by. There are also plenty of small shops selling clothing, shoes and souvenirs.

For almost three decades, Dimitrou’s Jazz Alley has been a West Coast ‘must’ for all the towering figures in the world of jazz – stars such as Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Betty Carter, and Bill Evans have played there.

In its first twenty years, Dimitriou’s Jazz Alley has become the West Coast’s premiere jazz club. Every week the club brings the greatest names in jazz to Seattle’s audiences. The nightclub first opened its doors in 1979 in Seattle’s University District. An intimate bistro setting, it attracted a diverse clientele. Equally popular among college students and die-hard jazz aficionados, one always found an exciting mixture of personalities and performers.

Six years later Jazz Alley relocated to the larger and more accessible club at 6th and Lenora; the perfect venue for introducing new fans to world class jazz music while still offering the exuberant atmosphere of the old establishment. Since moving to the present location the club has undergone two remodels. In July of 1990, the club completed a renovation with the expansion of the existing stage and the addition of a full mezzanine overlooking the stage.

In June of 2002 Jazz Alley was at it again. The new room includes a state of the art sound system, expanded stage, and the addition of over 100 seats, all while maintaining the original bistro ambience that makes Jazz Alley the intimate experience it is.

Jazz Alley was recently picked as both the Editor’s Choice and Audience Choice for Seattle’s Best Jazz club by Citysearch Seattle. In 2007, DownBeat Magazine voted Jazz Alley as one of the top 100 jazz clubs in the world. In years past they have also been voted “Best Jazz Club” by the Seattle Weekly.

Jazz Alley is a restaurant as well as a premier live music venue. Their menu features Northwest cuisine and they strive to support local organic farmers, fishermen, and food producers. They use non GMO ingredients as much as possible. They are also keenly aware of dietary restrictions and food allergies and therefore have included vegetarian, gluten-free, and non dairy items on their menu.

We welcome the support of smooth jazz artists like Grafitti with Special Guests Dennis Chambers and Gary Grainger on January 10th and 11th, 2012, Jeff Lorber with Special Guest Randy Brecker 19th – 22nd January, 2012, Peter White 2nd – 5th February 2012 and Brian Culbertson 14th – 19th February 2012. In March are announced Mindi Abair and Chuck Loeb.

Join the gentleman of Smooth Jazz Dave Koz and his friends for a week-long fun-filled trip to Europe. He will be cruising the Italian and French Riviera in September of 2012. It’s really a dream-come-true itinerary starting in Barcelona, Spain and continuing on to Naples, Rome and Florence, Italy — then on to Nice and Toulon, France! Three countries and six ports during an unforgettable seven-day cruise on board the Royal Caribbean Line’s Serenade of the Seas. This cruise is already booked out, but perhaps you have luck to catch the boat!

In addition to watching these talented artists, they will also host an array of events for you to join in on from Q & A Sessions to Cocktail Mixology Afternoons and the list goes on; every single day there will be unique events and special seminars, in an informal get-to-know-you-better setting. What better way to meet and become friends with the very musical masters you idolize.

With dramatic walls of glass and retractable canopy, Serenade of the Seas has already embarked on the course other cruise ships will someday follow. When you’re not enjoying the magnificent ocean views, you’ll be relaxing in the soothing ShipShape® Day Spa, swimming in one of the two pools, taking a much-needed whirlpool or catching up with friends over your favorite drink in one of our eight lounges.

The cruise will start in Barcelona, the capital of Catalonia. The Barri Gòtic (“Gothic Quarter” in Catalan) is the centre of the old city of Barcelona. Many of the buildings date from medieval times, some from as far back as the Roman settlement of Barcelona. Catalan modernista architecture (related to the movement known as Art Nouveau in the rest of Europe), developed between 1885 and 1950 and left an important legacy in Barcelona. Several of these buildings are World Heritage Sites.

Especially remarkable is the work of architect Antoni Gaudí, which can be seen throughout the city. His best-known work is the immense but still unfinished church of the Sagrada Família, which has been under construction since 1882, and is still financed by private donations.